


The Missing Rose

by MysticRose1992



Series: The Doctor's Family [2]
Category: Doctor Who (2005)
Genre: Attempted Brainwashing, Attempted Murder, Drama, F/F, F/M, Family, Family Drama, Family Feels, Kidnapping, Romance, Time Travel, more tags to come
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-03-05
Updated: 2019-04-01
Packaged: 2019-11-12 06:36:36
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 21,838
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18005729
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MysticRose1992/pseuds/MysticRose1992
Summary: Sequel to Jackie's Mission.The Doctor and Rose are coping after the Battle of Canary Wharf and the impending danger that lingers over not only the Doctor but also his unborn child. The Doctor and Rose try to come up with a plan to stop the Doctor's death while saving the universe. Along the way they meet a Runaway Bride, Doctor Jones, a Girl Who Waited, a Roman, River Song, and even Zero Luck. And as the Doctor's family keeps growing so does his resolve to keep on living.





	1. The Runaway Bride Part 1

**Chapter 1- The Runaway Bride Part 1**

The sound of military grade combat boots hitting the floor of an empty hallway in a continued pattern of someone with a mission walking echoed loudly. Steel grey eyes took in everything, learning as much as he could without looking suspicious or out of place. He had a mission to accomplish, the fate of the universe resting on his shoulders. He would see that this mission was completed.

An automatic door slid open to reveal the sterile room of a laboratory that was filled with many different sized tubes filled with many different things. "Status report." He ordered to the scientist in the room who was working at one of the biggest tubes that held a young girl of eight with long dark blue almost black hair that was pulled into two pigtails. The girl had her eyes closed and looked to be in a peaceful slumber.

"No progress yet, sir." The scientist reported as she spun around and fell into attention. "She has closed her mind off, sir. We are trying everything in our powers to pry her mind open, but she is strong, sir. Nothing we do is coming anywhere close to prying her mind open."

"I would expect nothing less from the first born child of the TARDIS." He said walking closer to the little girl. She looked so innocent, so child like. It was almost impossible to imagine that someone so young and innocent could be so powerful and deadly. But he knew from experience that she was. He felt a stirring in the back of his mind, something old and powerful, something that the young girl was trying to pull out of him. The instinct to protect the young. Everyone had that instinct, rather they liked to believe it or not.

"Sir," The scientist called gaining his attention, he turned away from the young girl, breaking the connection, to look at the scientist, "if I may." He nodded to the scientist to continue. "We may have an easier time breaking into her mind if we knew who her mother was."

"The report that you were given has everything on the girl, even her parents." He said.

"Yes, sir, I have read the report. The only time it mentions her mother is to say that she died in the battle of Canary Wharf…" The scientist paused to pull up the report and seemed to reread a line to make sure she had her facts right as he turned to look at the girl again, "... _18 months_ before the girl was born." He whipped around to look at the scientist before making his way over to her and read the report himself.

"Well, that's interesting." He muttered to himself.

"Sir, how is it possible for the girl's mother to die 18 months before the birth of her daughter?" The scientist asked.

"It's not." He said smirking, it seems were finally about to get interesting.

**-One-**

For months the Doctor slaved away searching for a way to get one last message through the Void. Most of that time the Doctor left the TARDIS to drift in the Vortex. And he had found a way. He had set the TARDIS to finding a supernova they could use before setting the TARDIS down in the old flat, just hours after the Battle Canary Wharf. The Doctor sighed as he taped up the last box before rubbing his hand down his face. Rose had wanted to box up the flat, told him she would do it while he ran his scans. But he didn't want her to do this alone, Jackie had become his mother just as much as she was Rose's. That and the TARDIS was doing most of the work scanning the universe for the supernova they needed.

"Thank you." Rose said coming up behind him and wrapping him in a hug, resting her head on the back of his shoulder. The Doctor leaned into her while resting his hand on top of her.

"No need to thank me, love, Jackie was just as much my mother as she was yours." The Doctor told her and the two of them stayed like that for a few minutes as their eyes took in the now empty flat. Everything had been taken into the TARDIS who had recreated the flat (without the furniture and other things). They spent hours moving all the furniture into the rooms in the TARDIS, rearranging the furniture the exact way Jackie had had it before boxing everything else up. Eventually the Doctor knew him and Rose would unbox everything once more, but that was an adventure for when they weren't grieving so much.

The TARDIS dinged, alerting them that she had found the Doctor gripped Rose's hand, carefully removed himself from her arms, and quickly led her back into the TARDIS. He had only gotten three steps up the ramp when he remembered the last box. The Doctor dropped Rose's hand and bolted back out of the TARDIS to quickly grab the box. Smiling as Rose laughed at him. The Doctor carried that box in, sat it down on the captain's chair and pecked Rose on the lips before turning his attention back to the TARDIS.

"She's found a sun that's about to go supernova, it's big enough to give us the energy we need to send Jackie a message." The Doctor told her.

"Right, and it's planets?" Rose asked peeking over his shoulder as he typed at the keyboard attached to the screen.

"All uninhabitable." The Doctor told her before quickly dashing around the console plugging in the coordinates to the supernova. "Right, when we get there I'm going to you to concentrate real hard on every memory you have of your mother. We'll only have one shot to do this." The Doctor told her before flipping the dematerialization lever and nodded to her when they materialized next to the sun just turned supernova. "Now, Rose!" The Doctor cried as he felt the TARDIS latch on to the power. Seconds later the ghostly image of Jackie standing on a beach appeared in front of them.

"Where are ya?" Jackie asked.

"Inside the TARDIS." Rose told her as the tears she had refused to cry all those months ago after her first meltdown appeared in her eyes. The Doctor quickly wrapped his arm around her.

"There's one tiny little gap in the universe left. Just about to close." The Doctor said. "And it takes a lot of power to send this projection."

"We're in orbit around a supernova. We're burning up a sun just to say goodbye." Rose told her mother who took a shaky breath.

"Why do you look like ghosts?" Jackie asked.

"Hold on." The Doctor said before quickly pulling out his screwdriver, setting it to the right setting and pointing it at the console. Jackie and the beach solidified in front of them and she walked closer to them, and the Doctor's hearts clenched at the silent tears falling from her eyes.

"Can I...?" Jackie asked holding out her arms for a hug.

"No, Mum, we're still just images." Rose told her. "No touching." That had Jackie wrapping her arms around herself.

"Can't ya come through properly?" Jackie asked, her tears falling faster.

"The whole thing would fracture. Two universes would collapse." The Doctor told her.

"So?" Jackie asked desperately and the Doctor gave her a small smile as he held Rose closer knowing that he had been so close to sending this message for Jackie  _and_  Rose instead of just Jackie.

"Where are we? Where did the gap come out?" The Doctor asked looking around the beach spotting Pete and Mickey a few feet behind Jackie, leaning against an old jeep.

"Norway." Jackie said.

"Norway. Right." The Doctor muttered.

"About 50 miles out of Bergen, it's called Darlig Ulv Stranden." Jackie said stumbling a little.

"Dalek?" Rose asked in fear.

"Darlig." Jackie corrected. "It's Norwegian for bad. This translates as Bad Wolf Bay." She added with a slight laugh causing the Doctor and Rose to laugh as well. "How long have we got?" Jackie asked, her laughter turning back into tears.

"About two minutes." The Doctor told her allowing his own tears to fall.

"I can't think of what to say!" Jackie cried.

"Still got Mickey I see, Mum." Rose said nodding her head past her mother to where Mickey was standing.

"There's four of us now." Jackie said. "Me, Pete, Mickey and the baby."

"Mum are you saying you're pregnant?" Rose asked.

"Three months gone. More Tylers on the way." Jackie said with a wet laugh.

"Guess we'll be giving birth around the same time, then, Mum." Rose told her and the Doctor bit back the urge to correct her, to tell Rose she would be carrying their child for 18 months instead of 9. But why waste the time they had with Jackie discussing that when he we had plenty of time to tell Rose about that fact later.

"I had a feeling you were pregnant Rose." Jackie said. "I'm never gonna meet my grand-baby!"

"Well, you might actually have." The Doctor told her confusing her. "Remember Mimi, I have a feeling she might be mine and Rose's daughter."

"It would explain why she refused to call me anything but granny." Jackie said.

"So what's the plan for you now, Mum? Going to back to hairdressing?" Rose asked.

"Nah, I'm not. There's still a Torchwood on this planet. It's open for business. I think I know a thing or two about aliens. Learned from the best, I did." Jackie said.

"Jackie Tyler. Defender of the Earth." The Doctor said proudly. "You're dead, officially. Back home. So many people died that day and you've gone missing. You're on the list of the dead." Jackie was crying again. "But here you are, living a life, day after day."

"Are we ever going to see each other again?" Jackie asked.

"I'm sorry, Mum." Rose said crying as well.

"What are you two going to do now?" Jackie asked.

"We've got the TARDIS and a child we have to protect. A child that is supposed to be taken from us. What do you think we're going to do?" The Doctor asked in a slight joking tone.

"You're gonna run like hell until you can't anymore." Jackie said giving them a wet smile.

"Of course, 's what we're good at, Mum." Rose joked.

"I..." Jackie started but her tears chocked her for a second. "You take care of them, you hear me Doctor, you take care of my baby and my grand-baby. Because if you don't I'll find away back there and slap you into your next body."

"I will, Jackie, I promise. I swear on my TARDIS that I will love and protect Rose and our child and any other children that may come until I no longer exist." The Doctor swore and seconds later Jackie and the beach were gone. Their time was up. Rose turned in his arms and cried as the Doctor held her to him as tight as he could. Jackie Tyler was gone from their lives.

The Doctor's head snapped up and caught sight of a woman in a white wedding dress standing in his TARDIS. "What?" The Doctor asked and the woman whipped around to glare at him. "What?" Rose turned in his arms, probably to look at the woman who shouldn't be there, but the Doctor was too distracted by the woman that shouldn't be there.

"Who are you?" The woman asked. "Where am I?"

"What?" Rose asked.

"What the hell is this place?" The woman demanded.

"What?" The Doctor asked releasing Rose to rush over to the woman, Rose followed him. "You can't do that, I wasn't..."

"How is this possible?" Rose asked walking around the woman looking her up and down.

"We're in flight!" The Doctor cried motioning to the console.

"How did you get onboard?" Rose asked.

"That is physically impossible." The Doctor said.

"Tell me where I am." The woman demanded shoving Rose away from her and the Doctor had to quickly catch her before she fell. "I demand you tell me right now, where am I?" The Doctor didn't know whither to go all Oncoming Storm on her for shoving his pregnant wife or demand how she managed to get onboard the TARDIS mid flight.

"Inside the TARDIS." Rose told the woman.

"What?" The woman demanded.

"The TARDIS." The Doctor said.

"What?" The woman asked.

"The TARDIS!" The Doctor growled at her as he released Rose once more to make his way back over to the console to try and figure out what the hell was happening.

"It's called the TARDIS." Rose told her calmly.

"That's not even a proper word!" The woman cried. "You're just saying things."

"How did you get in here?" The Doctor demanded.

"Well, obviously, when you kidnapped me." The woman snapped at him, but his eyes flew to Rose she suddenly covered her mouth looking as if she were about to be sick. Was she really getting morning sickness  _now_? "Who was it? Who's paying you? Was it Nerys? Oh, my God, she's finally got me back." The woman asked as the Doctor made his way over to his wife. "This has got Nerys written all over it."

"Who the hell is Nerys?" Rose asked, the wave of nausea having passed.

"Your best friend." The woman snapped out.

"Hold on, wait a minute." The Doctor asked finally taking in her wedding dress. "What are you dressed like that for?" His innocent question got him a disbelieving look from Rose and the woman.

"I'm going ten-pin bowling." The woman said flipping her veil back casually, before glaring at him. "What do you think, dumbo? I was halfway up the aisle! I've waited all my life for this." The Doctor backed up from the ranting woman before turning to the console to try and figure out how to get her out of here. "I was just seconds away and then you, I don't know, you drugged me or something."

"We did drug you!" Rose cried out.

"I'm having the police on you. Me and my husband, as soon as he is my husband, we're gonna sue the living backside off you!" The woman told them back Rose up until she was flushed against the Doctor. Suddenly the woman spotted the doors and took off towards them.

"No!" Rose cried and tried to stop her, but the woman easily dodged around Rose. "Wait a minute, wait a minute, don't!" The woman flung both doors open and paused in shock at the supernova in front of her, Rose sliding to a stop behind her. Through their bond the Doctor could feel Rose appreciating the beauty that the supernova was. The Doctor made his way over to them and wrapped his arms around Rose.

"You're in space." The Doctor told the woman calmly. "Outer space. This is my...  _our_  spaceship."

"It's called the TARDIS." Rose continued.

"How am I breathing?" The woman asked.

"The TARDIS is protecting us." The Doctor informed her.

"Who are you?" The woman asked.

"I'm the Doctor and this is my wife Rose. You?" The Doctor asked.

"Donna." The woman said.

"Human?" Rose asked.

"Yeah. Is that optional?" Donna asked both curious and fearful. When she wasn't ranting and raving the woman was alright.

"Well, it is for us." The Doctor told her.

"You're an alien?" Donna asked.

"I am." The Doctor said. "Still trying to figure her out." He joked nodded his head towards Rose who was snuggling back into his chest watching the supernova.

"It's freezing with these doors open." Donna said after a minute of trying to figure out what to say. Rose reached around her and quickly closed the doors as the Doctor released her to rush back to the console.

"I don't understand it and I understand everything. This can't happen." The Doctor ranted as Rose carefully led the shocked woman back to the safety of the console. "There is no way a human being can lock itself onto the TARDIS and transport itself inside. It must be..." The Doctor quickly grabbed his direct ophthalmoscope and began to check Donna's eyes with it, his mouth and mind working a mile a minute.

"There's some sort of subatomic connection, something like a temporal field. Maybe something pulling you into alignment with the chronon shell. Maybe it's something macrobudding your DNA with the interior matrix." He finished his scan of her eyes. "Maybe a genetic..." He reeled back from the slap Donna gave him, it was almost on par with the one Jackie had given him. "What was that for?"

"Get me to the church!" Donna yelled. The Doctor's eyes flew over to Rose who looked about ready to be sick again. Right, he needed to get this woman out of his TARDIS and then he needed to check on his wife and make sure she was alright, maybe even check the baby as well. All this stress couldn't be good for either of them.

"Right, fine. I don't want you here anyway. Where is this wedding?" The Doctor growled rushing over to Rose and helped her to the captain's chair next to the box from the flat. After making her sit the Doctor turned to face the console ready to input the coordinates.

"St Mary's, Heaven Road, Chiswick, London, England, Earth, the solar system." Donna snapped out catching sight of the box next to Rose. "I knew it, acting all innocent. I'm not the first, am I?"

"Don't touch that!" Rose cried catching the Doctor's attention, he shot around to see Rose holding the box tightly to her chest glaring at Donna.

"How many women have you abducted?" Donna demanded.

"This is my Mum's!" Rose told her tears in her eyes, the Doctor rushed over to her and held her to him.

"Where is she, then?" Donna demanded. "Popped out for a spacewalk?"

"She's gone." The Doctor told Donna sadly.

"Gone where?" Donna demanded as Rose began to cry harder as he fought his tears.

"We lost her." The Doctor said.

"Well, you can hurry up and lose me." Donna snapped before seeing the grief they were in. "How do you mean, lost?" She asked quietly. The Doctor glared at her, this woman had not only pushed his wife earlier but had made Rose cry. The Doctor gently took the box from Rose's arms, pulled her from the captain's seat, and hit the dematerialization lever.

"Right. Chiswick." The Doctor called out as they materialized and quickly led Rose away from Donna, when Rose gagged the Doctor pulled her to him and rubbed her back as Donna exited the TARDIS.

"I said St Mary's. What sort of Martian are you?" Donna snapped as the Doctor helped Rose out of the TARDIS.

_Are you getting morning sickness already, Love?_  The Doctor asked Rose through their link.

"Where's this?" Donna demanded.

"It's not me, it's the TARDIS." Rose told him softly and the Doctor reached out with one hand to lay it on the wood of the TARDIS. "Something's wrong with her, Doctor."

"What is it?" The Doctor asked.

"I don't know, she can't explain. She's off balance and slightly nauseous. It almost feels like she..." Rose started trying to find the right word.

"Like she's recalibrating?" The Doctor asked after checking his connection with the TARDIS before dropping his arms from around her to run back into the TARDIS. "She's digesting. What is it? What have you eaten? What's wrong?" He asked his ship.

_You're missing your favorite part._  Rose told him before sending the mental image of Donna's reaction to seeing the TARDIS from the outside.

"Donna, you've really got to think. Is there anything that might have caused this? Anything you might have done?" The Doctor asked half focused on the mental image Rose was sending him of Donna slowly walking around the outside of the TARDIS, as he tried to figure out what was making both his girls nauseous if it wasn't morning sickness. Some part of his mind wondered if Rose would actually get morning sickness. "Any sort of alien contact? I can't let you go wondering off. What if you're dangerous? I mean, have you seen lights in the sky or did you touch something, like something different?" Donna was poking her head inside the TARDIS now. "Something strange or something made out of a piece of metal? Who are you getting married to? Sure he's human?"

_Doctor, I think she's about to bolt!_  Rose warned him and the Doctor spun away form the console, he couldn't have this woman wondering around.

"He's not a bit overweight with a zip round his forehead, is he?" He finished asking.

_She's trying to bolt!_  Rose told him and he bolted out of the TARDIS to see Rose trying to keep Donna there.

"You can't leave, Donna." Rose said catching the woman's arm as she pushed pushed her.

"Leave me alone, I just want to get married." Donna said as he caught up with them.

"Come back to the TARDIS." The Doctor said as all three of them made their way out of the back alley and into the busy street.

"No way, that box is too weird." Donna said.

"It's just bigger on the inside, that's all." Rose told her as she took the Doctor's hand.

"Oh, that's all?" Donna asked sarcastically before looking at her watch. "Ten past three. I'm gonna miss it."

"Why don't you phone them? Tell them where you are." The Doctor suggested.

"How do I do that?" Donna asked confusing the Doctor.

"Haven't you got a mobile?" He asked receiving another unbelieving look from both women as they both stopped walking. Why were they giving him that look? He had just asked a simple question.

"I'm in my wedding dress, it doesn't have pockets. Who has pockets? Have you ever seen a bride with pockets?" Donna asked and Rose was laughing at him now as he realized how stupid his question was now. "When I went to my fitting at Chez Alison, the one thing I forgot to say was, 'Give me pocket'."

_I like her, can we keep her?_  Rose asked.

"This man you're marrying, what's his name?" The Doctor asked innocently.

"Lance." Donna told him.

"Good luck, Lance." The Doctor growled out in annoyance, secretly happy when Rose laughed harder.

"Oi! No stupid Martian is going to stop me from getting married, to hell with you." Donna snapped out before grabbing the skirt of her dress and jogging away.

"I'm not... I'm not.. I'm not from Mars." The Doctor cried out after her.

"Is that really important right now, Doctor, she's getting away." Rose said before taking off after Donna, the Doctor right behind her.


	2. The Runaway Bride Part 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Join the Discord Channel 'The Doctor's Family' to get sneak peeks at the up coming chapters and to talk with me and others about my DW stories. If you cannot find the channel find me (MyariRose #1920) and let me know you are have trouble finding the channel and I will send you an invite.

**Chapter Two- The Runaway Bride Part 2**

Steel grey eyes watched the young woman in front of him, she had long midnight blue hair that she always wore in pigtails and her Crystal blue eyes took in the doll she was playing with. She was ignoring him, like always. But he knew she knew he was there. Just like he knew she was biding her time before she finally escaped. He didn't know how he knew this, he just did.

He shifted to a more comfortable position in his chair. Everyone in this organization knew she had the power to escape them whenever she wanted. But everyone else believed she was on their side, he was the only one who knew she was actually waiting for something before she escaped. What that something was, he had no idea.

He blinked as a bright light surrounded the young woman for a second before disappearing leaving an elderly woman in the place where the young woman had been. He didn't panic, he was used to this by now. After the first few times she had done this, he had quickly caught onto her game. In the mornings she would take the form of an adorable eight year old girl, in the afternoons she took on the form of a stunning young woman, and at night she took the form of a beautiful old woman.

"I'll have dinner brought in." He told her. She didn't respond. He didn't expect her to. He reached over and quickly typed in an order of the one thing he knew she would actually eat. It didn't take long for her meal to be delivered. When her door slid open for the soldier to bring in her meal, she tensed up. Not enough for anyone not used to watching her would see. But since he had been assigned her Watcher all those months ago, he saw it. She wasn't comfortable. He couldn't have that.

He took the tray from the young soldier's hands and sent him away without another word. The door slid shut once more. She relaxed. And he smiled. He was the exception. He walked over to her table and sat the tray in her usual spot and pulled out the chair for her. She stood up and silently walked over, her eyes never looking at him. She never looked at him. But then again she never looked at anyone.

She ate in silence. He watched her. He would eat after she had laid down to rest. He knew she wouldn't actually sleep tonight, she had slept two days ago. She didn't need to sleep as much as the humans he worked for. She was like him, yet not. Unlike her, he didn't need to sleep. That was probably why they assigned him as her Watcher.

As usual, he thought while she ate. She would leave soon. He knew that. Could sense it. Would she want him to come with her? Would she let him come? He worked for the people who did this to her. Took her from her family. Trained her to kill. Kept her hostage. He hated it here just as much as she did. He wanted to leave just as much as she did. But unlike her, he had no where else to go. He was defective. He was broken. He was a Shifter that couldn't Shift properly. His sisters and brothers could Shift into what ever they wanted, be it living or not. He could only Shift into one thing: A white teddy bear.

What would someone like her need of something broken like him? She didn't need him to protect her, she was a trained killer. She didn't need him to take her anywhere, she could transport herself with just a single thought. She didn't need him to care for her, she had a family for that. He was useless to her. The only thing he could do was watch her. She wouldn't want him to come with her.

But he wanted to go with her. Wanted to prove himself to her. Wanted to show her that he was more than what they had made him into. Wanted to be with her, even if only as her friend. Wanted to make her happy. Wanted to keep her safe. Wanted to help her get back home to her family.

Her eyes snapped to him shocking him. She was done waiting. Whatever she had been waiting for had happened. She changed back into the young woman. It was time for her to go. She stood up. He stood as well. She held out her hand. He looked at it in confusion.

"Come with me." She whispered to him. He took her hand. And they were gone.

**-Two-**

"Taxi!" Donna yelled as Rose and the Doctor chased after her to keep her in their sights. "He had his light on!" She growled as a taxi passed them.

"There's another one." Rose pointed out and the three of them raced to get to it.

"Taxi!" Donne yelled. "Oi!" She called when the taxi passed them as well.

"There's one!" The Doctor cried and the trio ran to it. Rose was sure they made quite the site with Donna in her wedding dress trying to get a taxi. The taxi the Doctor had pointed out drove passed them without stopping.

"Oi!" Donna growled out in annoyance and Rose agreed with her. Why the hell couldn't a woman in a wedding dress get a taxi? Donna was late for her own wedding and these arseholes weren't helping.

"Do you have this effect on everyone?" The Doctor asked being his normal rude and not ginger self. "Why aren't they stopping?"

"They think I'm in fancy dress." Donna told him.

"Get off the sauce, darling!" Someone yelled as they passed them.

"They think I'm drunk." Donna growled.

"You're fooling no one, mate." Two young men yelled laughing as they passed them.

"They think I'm in drag." Donna sighed and Rose looked her up and down. How could anyone possibly think someone as gorgeous as Donna in her wedding dress was a guy in drag. A fleeting memory of Jack wearing a gorgeous ballroom gown after losing a bet to the Doctor, and looking fabulous in it, flashed through her mind. And anyway, even if Donna was in drag that didn't give them any reason to ignore her or make fun of her.

"Hold on, hold on." The Doctor said before quickly whistling loudly causing Donna and Rose to gasp and cover their ears at the unexpected sound.

_A little more warning than that, dear._  Rose hissed at him through their link.

_Sorry._  The Doctor sent back as a Taxi finally pulled over for them after turning around.

"St Mary's in Chiswick, just of Haven Road." Donna told the cabbie as she climbed in, Rose and the Doctor quickly squeezing in after her. "It's an emergency. I'm getting married, just hurry up.

"That'll cost you, sweetheart. Double rates today." The cabbie told her.

"Oh, my God!" Donna gasped out. "Have you got any money?" She asked them and Rose quickly pat down her pockets before realizing she left her jacket with all her money in it in the TARDIS. She hadn't needed it while packing up the flat and in her hurry to figure out how Donna had gotten on the TARDIS mid-flight and trying to get her back to her wedding, she had forgotten to grab it.

"Erm... no." Rose told her nervously.

"Haven't you?" The Doctor asked receiving a glare from Donna.

"Pockets?" Donna reminded him as the cabbie suddenly slammed on his breaks without warning causing Rose to hit her head on the divider. "There was no cause for that!" Donna screeched at the cabbie.

"Get out of my cab. I don't do free rides." The cabbie told them as the Doctor threw the cab door open and quickly got out as he cursed out the man in his native tongue that the TARDIS still refused to translate. The only reason Rose knew he was cussing the cabbie out was because of his thoughts.

"And that goes double for your mother!" Donna yelled as the Doctor slammed the cab door shut once her and Donna were safely out, having guessed the Doctor was cussing the cabbie out. Oh, this woman was good. "I'll have him. I've got his number, I'll have him. Talk about the Christmas spirit, endangering the well fare of a pregnant woman like that."

"Your pregnant?" The Doctor asked in shock.

"No you daft alien! Earlier your wife was getting sick, clear signs of morning sickness! I'm a woman, we notice things like that!" Donna snapped at him causing Rose to laugh. Oh, she was good, she was really good.

"Is it Christmas?" Rose asked looking around finally spotting all the Christmas decorations.

"Well, duh!" Donna told her. "Maybe not on Mars but here it's Christmas Eve." Donna lightly hit the Doctor's arm before pointing at a Phone box close to them. "Phone box! We can reverse the charges." She told them as the three of them took off towards the phone box, the Doctor instantly taking Rose's hand in his. This was exactly what they needed, an adventure to help them heal.

"How come you're getting married on Christmas Eve?" Rose asked.

"Can't bear it, I hate Christmas. Honeymoon, Morocco. Sunshine, lovely." Donna explained as they got to the phone box. "What's the operator? I've not done this in years. What do you dial? 100?"

"Just call direct." The Doctor ordered her as he used his screwdriver on it.

"What did you do?" Donna asked.

"Something... Martian." The Doctor told her. "Now phone, we'll get money." Rose and him took off towards a money machine and got behind a man taking his sweet time. The Doctor growled in annoyance as he began to bounce on the balls of his feet, his eyes flying over to Donna every few seconds. Finally after a long two minutes the man finally got his money and began to leave. The Doctor rushed up and pushed his way passed the man as Rose used her body to block anyone from seeing the Doctor use the screwdriver on the machine. As the machine gave them the money, Rose caught sight of the Santas.

_Not again._  Rose groaned through their link catching the Doctor's attention.

_Damn it._  He hissed when he also caught sight of the Santas as they began to march towards them.

"Taxi!" Donna yelled, both her and the Doctor spun around to look at her as they realized the same thing. The Santas weren't heading towards them, but towards Donna. "Thanks for nothing, Spaceman and Wife, I'll see you in court." Donna called to them before getting into the taxi that was being driven by another Santa.

"Donna!" They yelled as fear rushed through them. Donna was in danger! The Doctor spun them around to face the Santas behind them as they lowered their brass instruments that were really weapons. Rose looked around at all the people walking, they were in danger, they had to do something to save them. The Doctor quickly pulled out his screwdriver, pointed at the money machine and activated it causing the machine to start spitting out all the money it held. Once the people around them crowded around the now malfunctioning machine, the Doctor took Rose's hand and bolted away.

"We can't just leave those people! What if the Santas hurt them?" Rose asked as they ran.

"They weren't after them. The second we were blocked from their sights they lowered their weapons. We were their targets!" The Doctor informed her.

"Where are we going?" Rose asked.

"Back to the TARDIS!" The Doctor said. They ran through the streets of London, dodging people and ignoring the rude looks and shouts their way. They had a mission, they had to save Donna. Once back at the TARDIS the Doctor and Rose ran to the console and the Doctor quickly set to work typing. "I've set the TARDIS to lock onto Donna."

"How are we going to get to her? The TARDIS can't materialize on such a small and moving target." Rose said as she began hitting buttons and flipping switches as the TARDIS told her.

"We're going to fly after her." The Doctor told her as he began to pull levers and turn nobs.

"Fly?! The TARDIS doesn't fly!" Rose cried out in shock.

"Just because she chooses not do doesn't me she can't." He told her as the console began to spark angrily. "Behave!" The Doctor growled as he used his trusty hammer to hit at the console. "She really hates flying!" Rose cried out in shock and slight pain. "Stay here, keep us as steady as you can, I can't risk you falling." He told her as he ran to the doors and threw them open and Rose was shocked to see them racing down the motorway, cars flying passed them with Donna in front of them staring out the cab window in shock.

"Open the door!" The Doctor yelled as he gripped the doors tightly as to keep from falling out of the TARDIS as it tilted dangerously. Rose quickly raced around the console to turn a knob and straighten them out, wincing in pain a long side the TARDIS. "Open the door!"

"I can't, it's locked!" She heard the muffled voice of Donna yell seconds before the sound of the screwdriver going off. The TARDIS jerked backwards for a second before Rose could slam her hand on a button to bring them closer to the cab Donna was in. "Santa's a robot." Rose heard Donna yell, her voice no longer muffled.

"Donna, open the door." The Doctor called to her.

"What for?" Donna asked.

"You've got to jump." The Doctor informed her as the TARDIS console sparked again.

"I'm a blinking bit jumpy! I'm supposed to be getting married." Donna yelled.

"We're losing them!" The Doctor yelled back at her. Rose growled at him as she raced to the other side of the console and pushed up a switch and turned three knobs to the left before all but punching a large white button. Rose screamed and flinched when the console sparked and exploded as the TARDIS yelled at her in pain.

"Don't yell at me like that! It ain't my fault!" Rose growled back at her as they bounced dangerously. The Doctor cried out in shock as he quickly grabbed onto the doorway keeping himself from flying out of the TARDIS.

"A little warning would have been nice!" The Doctor growled at her as he steadied himself.

"The exploding console was all the warning you needed!" Rose growled back as he soniced something.

"Listen to me, you've got to jump." The Doctor yelled to Donna.

"I'm not jumping on a motorway." Donna yelled back.

"Whatever that thing is, it needs you and whatever it needs you for, it's not good." The Doctor told her. "Now, come on!"

"I'm in my wedding dress!" Donna growled at him.

"And you look lovely, now do as the Doctor says!" Rose yelled at her as the console began to catch fire.

"Come on!" The Doctor growled.

"I can't do it!" Donna cried.

"Trust me." The Doctor told her.

"Is that what you said to her? Rose's mother, the one you lost?" Donna asked. "Did she trust you?"

"Yes she did. And she is not dead, she is so alive. Now jump!" The Doctor told her, and with a scream from Donna, the two of them fell to the floor of the TARDIS. The TARDIS slammed the doors shut and quickly flew them to safety before kicking them out of her as the console burst into flames. The Doctor grabbed a fire extinguisher and set to work to try and stop the flames, coughing as he did so. Rose stood next to Donna watching as she cheeked her watch and sighed.

"Funny thing, is, for a spaceship, she doesn't do that much flying." The Doctor told them after the TARDIS had slammed the door on him. Donna just sighed and walked to the edge of the roof the TARDIS had landed them on and leaned against the railing, Rose following her.

"We missed it, didn't we?" Rose asked her softly as the Doctor made his way to them.

"We'd better give her a couple of hours. You all right?" He asked and Rose wasn't sure if he was asking her or Donna.

"'M fine, just a headache, nothing I can't handle. But Donna's missed her wedding." Rose told him causing the Doctor to suck in a breath.

"It doesn't matter." Donna told them before they could apologize.

"Don't say that. It does matter. A wedding is important." Rose told her gently taking her hand.

"You can book another date,  _when_  the wedding happens doesn't really matter just so long as it  _happens_." The Doctor told her.

"Of course." Donna said forcing a smile on her face.

"Still got the honeymoon." The Doctor pointed out.

"It's just a holiday now." Donna told him.

"Yeah, yeah, sorry." The Doctor said.

"It's not your fault." Donna told them.

"Well, that's a change." Rose joked causing the Doctor to chuckle receiving a small smile from Donna.

"Wish you had a time machine then we could go back and get it right." Donna said with a sigh, missing the shared look Rose and the Doctor shared.

"Yeah, yeah." The Doctor said awkwardly. "But even if I did, I couldn't go back on someone's personal timeline." He explained receiving a strange look from Donna. "Apparently." He added. Donna shook her head at him before moving to sit on the edge of the roof, Rose sat beside her and smiled at the Doctor when he took off his suit jacket and laid it over Donna's shoulders as she began to shiver before he took a set on the other side of her.

"God, you're skinny. This wouldn't fit a rat." Donna joked.

"Oh, and you better put this on." The Doctor said before pulling a ring out of his packet.

"Really, Doctor, with your wife right here? What would she think?" Donna joked.

"Normally I don't share, but with you I could make an exception. Someone's going to need to keep him in line when I get too big. Plus we're gonna need someone to help look after him once the baby is born." Rose joked.

"You're having a boy?" Donna asked.

"I was talking about the Doctor." Rose told her causing her to laugh.

"Oi!" The Doctor called in playful agitation causing Donna to laugh harder. "As I was saying. Those creatures can trace you. This is a bio-damper, it should keep you hidden." He told her before gently taking her left hand and slid the ring onto her wedding finger. "With this ring, I thee bio-damp." He joked.

"For better or for worse." Donna joked back. The three then sat there in silence as they looked out at the city laid in front of them. "Come on then, robot Santas, what are they for?" Donna asked.

"Oh, your basic robo-scavenger. The Father Christmas stuff is just a disguise." The Doctor explained.

"They're trying to blend in. We met them last Christmas." Rose told her.

"Why, what happened then?" Donna asked confusing them.

"Great big spaceship hovering over London, you didn't notice?" Rose asked. Surely she was pulling their leg.

"I had a bit of a hangover." Donna told her.

"Right, pull the other one." Rose told her.

"I'm not pulling your leg." Donna said causing Rose and the Doctor to blink at her. Was she serious?

"We spent Christmas day just over there," The Doctor said nodding his head towards the Powell Estate, "the Powell Estate with my..." The Doctor stopped himself and Rose watched as his mind pulled up memories of all their time with Jackie and Mickey in that flat. "Family. My family... They're gone now."

"Question is, what do camouflage robot mercenaries want with you?" Rose asked as she helped the Doctor mentally pull himself away from those thoughts for now. The wound was still too fresh, it still hurt too much.

"And how did you get inside the TARDIS? I don't know." The Doctor questioned and Donna sighed in annoyance obviously having hoped they were passed this already. "What's your job?" He asked as he reached into the inside of his suit jacket that Donna was still wearing and grabbed his screwdriver.

"I'm a secretary." Donna told them as the Doctor began to scan her.

"Weird. I mean, you're not special, you're not powerful, you're not connected, you're not clever, you're not important." The Doctor said and Rose mentally slapped him for how rude he was being.

"Rose, this mother of yours, just before she left did she punch him in the face?" Donna asked before slapping the Doctor's screwdriver from her face. "Stop bleeping me!"

"She didn't punch him, but she has slapped him quite a few times." Rose told her glaring at the Doctor.

_Behave!_  She hissed at him and he sighed and glared out in front of him, his mind racing as he tried to figure this out.

"What kind of secretary?" The Doctor asked after a minute.

"I'm at HC Clements. It's where I met Lance." And the Doctor was now only half listening. "I was temping. I mean, it was all a bit posh really. I'd spent the last two years at a double glazing firm. Well, I thought I'm never going to fit in here and then he made me a cup of coffee. I mean, that just doesn't happen, nobody gets the secretaries a coffee. And Lance, he's the head of HR. He don't need to bother with me. But he was nice, he was funny. And it turns out he thought everyone else was really snotty, too. That's how it started, me and him. One cup of coffee. That was it."

"When was this?" Rose asked.

"Six months ago." Donna told her shocking her.

"Ain't that a bit quick to get married?" Rose asked.

"Well, he insisted. And he nagged and he nagged me. And he just wore me down and then finally I just gave in." Donna told them, Rose and the Doctor locked eyes over Donna's head. Both of them had a feeling that it was the other way around but it wasn't their place to say other wise.

"What does HC Clements do?" The Doctor asked.

"Oh, security systems, you know. Entry codes, ID cards, that sort of thing. If you ask me, it's a posh name fore locksmiths." Donna told them.

"Keys..." The Doctor muttered as his mind began to race once more.

"Anyway, enough of my CV. Come on, it's time to face the consequences Oh this is going to be so shaming." Donna said with a sigh before giving the Doctor a hard look. "You can do the explaining, Martian boy."

"Yeah, I'm not from Mars." The Doctor told her before he got up and helped Rose to her feet. Once to her feet Rose held out her hand and helped Donna up.

"Oh, I had this great big reception all planned. Everyone's gonna be heartbroken."


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter Three-**

He glared at the sky above him as plane after plane flew above them dropping bombs on the city they were hiding in. He didn't know how long they had been running. Time had become irrelevant to him. All that mattered to him now was keeping her out of their hands. But she wasn't making it easy for him.

He ran down another street, barely dodging a young woman with long, dark brown hair that had been braided into pig tails. She yelled something at him, but he ignored her. She wasn't important to him. She wasn't the person he was looking for. He slid to a stop and growled before hiding.

What were  _they_  doing here? Were  _they_  the reason they had come here? His steel grey eyes took in the man and woman standing in front of him next to a blue Police Box. The man had short, military style hair and was wearing a leather jacket as he talked into the phone. He watched the man as he demanded something into the phone.

She never told him where they were going. Never told him why they went where they did. But she did tell him other things. She told him her hopes and dreams. What she wanted to do once she got home. She told him about Lana, but never whom Lana was to her. And she never spoke to him about her parents.

He ducked behind a fence and the man and woman stormed passed him. Were they following them? Were these her parents? He shook his head. He didn't have time for riddles. He pushed off the fence and took off running again. He had to find her. She had run off when he had left to go find her food.

And even though she had run off, he knew she hadn't run from him. She was testing him. She wanted him to search for her. To find her. And if she wanted him to find her, then find her he will. Because it was what she wanted, and he would give her what ever she wanted.

**-Three-**

Loud and slightly annoying Christmas songs were the first thing to greet the trio as soon as they walked into the reception. Rose looked around and was shocked to see everyone dancing and having fun, it was as if the bride had never disappeared. Rose glanced at the woman beside her to find her glaring at everyone in shock and wondered when the rant would happen. Rose allowed the Doctor to gently grab her hand and pull her back a few steps so that she was beside him instead of Donna.

_Don't want to accidentally get in the splash zone of her rant._  The Doctor joked as he, too, took in the partying family and friends of the bride and groom. One by one the guest became aware of the glaring bride and stopped partying until only two people were left dancing. A young blond woman in a blue dress and a man in a tux, they were too busy laughing and flirting with each other to notice Donna. Rose only needed to take one look at Donna to tell that the man dancing and flirting with the woman was the groom. Rose did  _not_  like this man. Donna could do  _so_  much better.

Seconds later both of them noticed Donna and the music was stopped. The groom stared at Donna in shock and slight fear. "You had the reception without me?" Donna started.

"Donna, what happened to you?" The groom, Lance if Rose remembered correctly, asked in obviously fake concern.

"You had the reception without me?" Donna asked louder quickly entering rant mode.

_This rant is going to be more enjoyable than the last._  The Doctor whispered into her mind and Rose agreed. Rants were always more enjoyable when they weren't aimed at them.

"Hello, I'm Doctor." The Doctor said smiling before pointing at Rose. "And this is my Rose."

_Can we set her loose on them?_  Rose asked him and her answer was a mental smirk.

"They had the reception without me." Donna told them as she turned to look at them.

"Yes, we gathered." The Doctor told her in a way that let Rose know he was winding her up.

"Well, it was all paid for, why not?" The woman he had been dancing and flirting with Lance called out and Donna whipped around to glare at her. It would seem the Doctor didn't need to help wind Donna up.

"Thank you, Nerys." Donna hissed out at the woman.

"Well, what were we supposed to do?" An older woman asked making her way towards them. "I got your silly little message in the end. I'm on Earth? Very funny." The woman stopped in front of them as the rest of the guests made their way towards them. "But what the hell happened? How did you do it?" Soon everyone was talking all at once and very loudly causing Rose's headache to remind Rose about it. Rose flinched and brought her free hand to her temple gaining the Doctor's attention. He growled at the guests as he quickly let got of Rose's hand and moved so that he could block her from them (as if that was going to stop their noise from getting to her) and began to gently message her head.

When Rose heard Donna start crying, silencing the talking guests at once, Rose removed the Doctor's hands from her head and went to check on the woman. Donna was in the arms of Lance who was trying to calm her down as everyone began to clap. Rose glanced up at the Doctor when his hand came up to message the back of her head, but his attention was focused on the couple in front of them. Rose looked back at Donna in time to see her wink at them causing Rose to lightly chuckle.

_Ah the old 'I'm crying and need you to comfort me' trick. Works every time._  Rose silently told the Doctor.

_That trick only works on human men._  The Doctor told her smugly, and Rose snorted causing him to look at her.  _What?_  Rose's response was to mentally send him every time she used that trick on him in the past, especially with his leather wearing self.  _I was never tricked, I just used those times as excuses to hold you longer and closer than normal. Unlike human males I can tell when the tears are real or not._

Minutes later Rose found herself and the Doctor leaning against the bar watching Donna and her wedding guest enjoying the reception. Rose laughed at Donna when she made a silly face at them while dancing with Lance. "You don't have to stand here with me, I can watch over Donna while you dance." The Doctor told her.

"Not really in the dancing mood." Rose told him causing him to hum in response.

"You wouldn't happen to have your phone on you, would you love?" The Doctor asked and Rose shook her head. "Right, then, be right back." He told her before slipping away. Rose watched him walk over to a guy and silently asked to borrow his phone, getting it and bringing it back over to her.

"Whatcha doing?" Rose asked as he slipped his glasses on as he began to type something into the search bar.

"Looking up HC Clements." He told her before glancing around them and pulling out his screwdriver to quicken the search. Rose sucked in a breath and glared at the phone when she saw that it was run by Torchwood. Without a word the Doctor calmly closed the phone before walking back over to the man and returned it.

_Doctor?_  Rose called out not liking how quiet he was, the only time she had seen him like this was right after they had lost her mum. Her worry and fear increased when he didn't respond to her as he settled beside her and pulled her into his arms.

They stood there like that for a few minutes with her sending as much love and comfort to him as she could while he gathered himself. His eyes seemed to catch an elder blond woman and he watched her as his mind replaced the woman with Jackie. Rose quickly looked around the room knowing that she needed to find a way to distract both of them from the loss of her mother. Her eyes found the camera man paid to record everything that happens at the wedding. Rose mentally pulled the Doctor's attention away from the blond woman and towards the camera man.

_Do you think he caught it?_  Rose asked and the Doctor smiled at her.

_Only one way to find out!_  The Doctor told her before taking her hand and led her across the room to the camera man.

"You wouldn't have happened to be at the wedding?" The Doctor asked the man.

"Yeah. You wanna take a look?"

"We'd love to." Rose said and the man nodded before quickly changing out the tapes.

"Well, I taped the whole thing, they've all had a look." The man explained as he quickly got the tape to the time everything happened. "They said sell it to You've Been Frames, I was more like the news. Here we are." The Doctor and Rose watched as Donna suddenly began to glow and scream, Rose's eyes widened. That glow looked exactly like the Heart of the TARDIS.

"Can't be, play it again." The Doctor said and the man replayed the scene.

"Clever, mind. Good trick, I'll give her that. I was clapping." The camera man said. The Doctor watched the scene again.

"What is it, love? What happened to Donna?" Rose asked.

"That looks like Huon particles." The Doctor told her.

"What's that, then?" The camera man asked reminding them both that he was still there.

"That's impossible, that's ancient." The Doctor said taking off his glasses to look at her in confusion. "Huon energy doesn't exist any more, not for billions of years. It's so old that..." The Doctor whipped his head around to stare at Donna in fear as Rose caught the last part of his thought.

"It's can't be hidden by a bio-damper!" Rose gasped out in fear as she took off towards Donna with the Doctor right behind her. Before Rose could stop at Donna and Lance, the Doctor grabbed her hand and forced her to run out of the room. "We can't leave them there!" The two came to a sliding stop when they spotted a couple of Santa's out the window.

"Donna!" The Doctor yelled as they ran back into the room. "Donna, they've found you."

"But you said I was safe." Donna said as they came to a stop in front of her.

"The bio-damper doesn't work. We've got to get everyone out." The Doctor told her.

"Oh, my God, it's all my family." Donna muttered in fear.

"Out the back door." Rose said and the trio ran to the back door only to stop when they found two more Santa's waiting out there for them. "Maybe not." Rose said as the Doctor cursed in his native language and pulled them back inside. They ran over to a side door and the Doctor looked out of it to see two more Santa's.

"We're trapped." Donna said as one of the Santa's in front of them lifted up a remote control and Rose spun around to stare at the Christmas tree remembering all too well what happened last time.

"Christmas trees." The Doctor breathed out catching her thought.

"What about them?" Donna asked.

"They kill." Rose told her as the Doctor rushed forward.

"Get away from the tree!" He yelled as Rose and Donna quickly followed them.

"Get away from the Christmas trees, everyone get away from them!" Rose and the Doctor cried together as Donna made her way over to Lance while yelling for him.

"Stay away from the tree!" The Doctor yelled as Rose and him quickly moved the kids away from the trees.

"They're dangerous!" Rose cried taking a young girl into her arms.

"Stay away from the tree." The Doctor ordered.

"Oh, for God's sakes, they're idiots." The elder woman that had reminded the Doctor of Jackie said rolling her eyes. "What harm's the Christmas tree gonna..." Before the woman could finish her sentence the ornaments on the tree began to play music and float off the tree. "Oh!" She cried happily. Rose and the Doctor watched in fear as the ornaments floated over everyone wondering what would happen.

Without warning, one ornament flew at the Doctor who quickly ducked, thankfully the ornament flew between the woman and an elder man before hitting the floor and exploding. The room filled with screams as the other ornaments began to dive bomb them. Rose grabbed onto the Doctor as everyone began to push and shove each other to get away form the exploding ornaments. The Doctor used his body to help shield her from the explosions that got too close as he led her over to the DJ booth.

_Cover your ears, this is gonna get loud._  He warned her before standing up.

"Oi, Santa, word of advice. If you're attacking a man with a sonic screwdriver," The Doctor pulled out his screwdriver and picked up a mic, "don't let him near the sound system." He said into the mic before plugging the screwdriver into the soundboard and turned it on. The speakers let out a high pitch squeal that caused the whole room to vibrate and everyone to scream. After a long two minutes, the Doctor removed the screwdriver from the soundboard.

_Ow!_  Rose mentally yelled at him as he helped her up.

_I did warn you._  The Doctor told her sheepishly before all but dragging her to the fallen Santas. When he dropped her hand to quickly search the floor, Rose took that time to find Donna.

"It's all right, Stan, you'll be all right." Rose heard someone say as she caught Donna and Lance peeking out from behind an over turned table.

"Michael, Connie." Donna said rushing out from behind the table to check on two kids near her. "Sanita, do something useful."

"What is it?" Lance asked as Rose got to Donna and checked her over. "What were they?"

"Just stop wittering, just help him." Donna hissed at him.

"Look at that, Rose," The Doctor said looking away from the robots on the floor finally taking note that Rose was not beside him as he had expected. "Rose?" He called out in panic, and Rose realized why the Doctor had made sure she was near him that day. He was afraid to lose her.

"Over here, darling." Rose called to him and felt his relief flood their bond when he saw her. "What is it?" She asked walking over to him before kneeling beside him.

"Remote control for the decorations," He told her showing her the remote control, "but there's a second remote control for the robots." He said excitedly showing her the robotic head as Donna stopped next to them.

"Wait, does that mean they're not scavengers any more?" Rose asked taking the head from him and examining it as well.

"I think someone's taken possession." The Doctor told her.

"Never mind all that, you're a doctor, people have been hurt." Donna said.

"Nah, they wanted you alive." The Doctor told her as he tossed an ornament to her. "Look. They're not active now."

"All the same, you could help." Donna told him as he took the head back from her.

"He's not that kind of doctor, Donna." Rose told her standing up.

"Got to think of the bigger picture." The Doctor told her as he held the head to his ear and listened. "There's still a signal!" He cried shooting to his feet, took Rose by the hand and nearly pulled her arm out of her socket as he bolted from the room. Once outside the Doctor released her hand to pull out his screwdriver and began to sonic the head as he spun in circles looking for where the signal was strongest. Rose watched him silently as she fought with herself to not think about the last wedding she had been to (hers) and the fact that her mother had been there, and that she was gone now.

Rose was brought out of her thoughts when Donna jogged up to her and the Doctor. "There's someone behind this, directing the roboforms." The Doctor muttered as Donna stopped on the other side of him.

"But why is it me? What have I done?" Donna asked.

"Well, as soon as we can find the controller, we can ask." Rose told her.

"Oh!" The Doctor cried out having found where the signal was coming from. "It's up there." He said pointing his screwdriver to the sky. "Something in the sky. No, no, no, no!"

"The signal's gone, isn't it?" Rose asked and the Doctor nodded before tucking his screwdriver away and taking Rose's hand.

"Donna, we've got to get to your office, HC Clements. I think that's were it all started." The Doctor said as he turned his attention to Lance, who had just stopped beside Donna. "Lance!" He looked at Donna. "Is he Lance?" Before Donna even had a chance to answer him, he continued. "Lance, can you give us a lift?" Without waiting for an answer the Doctor pulled Rose towards the car park.

It didn't take them very long to get to the office once Donna had been able to convince Lance to drive them. And soon the trio, turned into a group of four, was running through the lobby of HC Clements with Donna leading them. It actually impressed Rose with how fast the woman could run in heels  _and_  a wedding dress, not many people could do that.

"To you lot this might just be a locksmith, but HC Clements was bought up 23 years ago by the Torchwood Institute." The Doctor explained as Donna led them upstairs to her desk.

"Who are they?" Donna asked as the Doctor began to use the computer.

"They were behind The Battle of Canary Wharf, and the reason we lost my mother." Rose explained ignoring a wave of hurt and pushing back the urge to cry. She smiled at the Doctor when he sent a wave of love and comfort her way knowing he was feeling the same as her. Donna's confused look shocked Rose back into what was happening right now. "The Cyberman invasion." Rose told her hoping to spark some sort of memory of it, but Donna still continued to look confused. "Skies over London full of Daleks?" Rose tried again.

"I was in Spain." Donna told her.

"They had Cybermen in Spain." Rose told her suspiciously wondering if she was lying.

"Scuba diving." Donne continued and Rose shook her head at the woman.

"That big picture, Donna, you keep on missing it." The Doctor told her causing Rose to chuckle as he pushed away from the computer and shoved Lance aside to get to another computer. "Torchwood was destroyed, but HC Clements stayed in business. I think someone else came in and took over the operation." He explained before hitting the computer when it wouldn't do what he wanted it to.

"What do they want with me?" Donna demanded.

"We don't know how but somehow you've been dosed with Huon energy and apparently that's a problem because Huon energy hasn't existed since the..." Rose turned to look at the Doctor in question as she looked through his thoughts again. "Really? The Dark Times?" Rose asked in shock as the Doctor looked up from the computer having finished what he needed to do.

"My people's Dark Times, not yours." He explained before taking over the explanation. "The only place you find a Huon particle now is a remnant in the heart of the TARDIS." Rose stared at him in fear wondering what this meant for her.  _Nothing for you to worry about, love, if it was going to kill you it would have done so the second I took it out of you._  He told her trying to reassure her.

_That's not a reassuring as you wanted it to be, love._  She told him.

_Right, sorry._  He said before focusing on the shocked woman in between them.

"Say this is the TARDIS," He continued his explanation by picking up a mug from the desk beside him, "and this is you." He said picking up a pencil from the same desk. "The particles inside you activated, the two sets of particles magnetize and wap!" He shook the pencil and mug before placing the pencil into the mug. "You were pulled inside the TARDIS."

"I'm a pencil inside a mug?" Donna asked trying to wrap her head around everything.

"Yes, you are. 4H sums you up." The Doctor said and Rose mentally slapped him.

_Rude!_  Rose hissed at him.

_And not ginger!_  He sent back playfully. "Lance, what was HC Clements working on? Anything top secret, special operations, do not enter?" He asked the man behind Rose as she tried to comfort the woman knowing from experience how frustrating and scary all of this could be when you first meet the Doctor. The Doctor pulled out his screwdriver and soniced a computer as Rose gently took Donna's hand and led her to stand beside the Doctor. She had learned from experience that even though the Doctor was always in the center of the danger, the safest place to be was right next to the Doctor.

"I don't know, I'm in charge of personnel. I wasn't project manager." Lance told them as the Doctor hacked into the system. "Why am I even explaining myself? What the hell are we talking about?"

"You make keys, that's the point." The Doctor said as he quickly scanned through the system pulling up a blueprint of the building. "And look at this, we're on the third floor. Underneath reception there's a basement, yes?" The Doctor asked leading them to the lift and opening it, Rose instantly saw what he had seen.

"Then why is there a button marked 'lower basement' in the lift?" Rose asked gaining a proud smirk from the Doctor.

"There's a whole floor which doesn't exist on the official plan." The Doctor finished as both him and Rose stepped on to the lift.

"Makes you wonder what's down there, doesn't it?" Rose asked smiling excitedly at both Donna and Lance.

"You're telling me this building's go a secret floor?" Lance asked.

"No, we're showing you this building's got a secret floor." The Doctor told him.

"It needs a key." Donna pointed out.

"We don't." Rose told her as the Doctor point his screwdriver at it and activated it.

"Right then, thanks, you two. We can handle this, see you later." The Doctor told them as he put his screwdriver back into the inside of his suite jacket.

"No chance, Martian and Wife. You're the couple who keeps saving my life." Donna said stepping onto the lift. "I ain't letting you two out of my sight."

"Going down." The Doctor muttered and Rose could tell he was mixed about having Donna with them, part of him was excited about meeting a new friend the other was still hurting over the loss of Jackie and didn't want a third person with them right now.

"Lance?" Donna called to the man expecting him to join her.

"Maybe I should go to the police." Lance said nervously but something about the way he said it unnerved Rose.

"Inside!" Donna ordered and Lance obeyed.

"To honour and obey." The Doctor muttered receiving a glare from Rose.

"Tell me about it, mate." Lance muttered back.

"Oi!" Donna and Rose cried out.

_Just for that you're sleeping on the couch, and not the comfy one!_  Rose growled at him as the lift began to descend.


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter Four-**

Steel grey eyes closed in annoyance and pinched the bridge of his nose as he fought back the urge to pull out his gun and shoot the man in front of him. It wasn't as if the man would  _stay_  dead for long if he did shoot the man, but he had promised Mimi that he wouldn't kill the man any  _more_ , no matter how fun killing the man could be at times. And, if he was being honest with himself, the man was very useful at hunting the Doctor down.

A giggle he knew by heart caused him to smile. She knew what he was thinking. She always did. He opened his eyes and looked past Jack to find her watching him. She knew he found their trips to visit the man both amusing and very frustrating. Especially when Jack be flirt with him. There were times when he would flirt back, and then there were times when he wanted to shoot the man.

"Jack, I would be grateful if you would allow us to borrow your  _hand_." He told the man, purposefully wording it that way. Jack blinked at him in shock not used to his changing moods since this was technically the first time Jack was meeting them.

"I'm sure that the rest of me would just as useful to you than just my  _hand_." Jack told him with a wink.

"But we don't need your body, Jack, we just need your  _hand_." He told the man as she skipped over to the desk where a large jar stood with a hand inside it. The second She touched the jar he pulled out his gun and pointed it at Jack the same time Jack pointed his gun at her.

"What possible use could you two have with my  _hand_?" Jack asked glaring at her while still smiling. A trait that he knew the man had picked up while traveling with the Doctor.

"Oh, plenty of things, I can assure you." He told Jack as the man turned his glare towards him. "But right now we need to use it the same way you do." He smiled widely at the man when he saw Jack's eyes harden. He knew exactly what the man thought they were going to do, and though he could easily tell him what was going to happen, he wouldn't. Not because it would disrupt the time lines, but because he knew it would be much more fun to watch the man squirm as he tried to figure out who they were and what they wanted. What made this whole situation funnier is that Jack had sent them here.

"Well, sorry to disappoint you both, but my  _hand_  leaves a lot the be desired in that aspect." Jack told them.

"Oh, Captain, just because you don't know how to use your  _hand_ , doesn't mean I won't." He told the man.

"He'll stop you." Jack growled at them, all pretense gone. "Whatever it is you two are planning on doing, he'll find you and stop you. He always does."

"Why are you so sure we need to be stopped? What makes you think we're doing something that needs to be stopped?" She asked him innocently as she held the jar gently.

"We're not the bad guys here, Captain." He told the man.

"And what, he is?" Jack growled out.

"So defensive of the man that abandoned you on that Game Station." He told the man, he didn't want to say those words knowing how hurt Jack had been when he heard the TARDIS leave without him, but knowing from the said man that he had to say it.

"The Doctor had his reasons to do that. And even if he didn't, I would still defend and protect him because he deserves to be defended and protected while he defends and protects us." Jack told them and he smiled at the man.

"Truer words could not have been said." She told Jack as she made her way pass the man towards him.

"Who are you?" Jack asked lowering his gun, he lowered his as well.

"Spoilers." They told him at the same time as he rested his hand on her shoulder, and then they were gone.

**-Four-**

The Doctor pouted the whole way down to the lower basement, he didn't want to sleep on the not comfy couch! He had only meant it as a joke! He tried for what seemed like the tenth time since the lift began to descend to catch Rose's eye while sending wave after wave of apologies her way. But she was ignoring him. By the time the lift doors opened to a corridor lit with an eerie green light, the Doctor had already made about 100 plans on how to try and get back on Rose's good side to be allowed back into bed with her.

"Where are we?" Donna asked as she stepped off the lift and looked around. "What goes on down here?"

"Only one way to find out." Rose told her linking her arm with the woman. The Doctor gave the two a small smile, he was happy to see Rose starting to bounce back from the loss of her mother. Oh he knew it would take both of them quite a while to fully heal, but this was a start.

"Do you think Mr Clements knows about this place?" Donna asked.

"The mysterious HC Clements? Oh, I think he's part of it." The Doctor said before his eyes landed on three segways. "Oh, look, transport." He told them with a smirk as he led the group to them.

"But there's only three and there's four of us." Lance pointed out. "I guess I could stay here."

"No chance." Donna told the man.

"Yeah, me and Rose can share one. I mean it'll be a tight squeeze, but we've been in tighter squeezes." The Doctor said as him and Rose locked eyes. It was a long second before Rose stepped onto the segway and allowed him to situate himself behind her so that his legs were on either side of hers and his arms were wrap around her. The group slowly made their way down the corridor on their 'transport'.

"You know, we would probably go just as fast if not faster if we walked." Rose pointed out with a wide smile.

"I'm sure we would. But you can't tell me this isn't more fun." The Doctor told her smiling just as wide. Rose and Donna shared a look before they both began laughing, their laughter was infectious and soon the Doctor was laughing along with them as Lance looked at them as if they had lost their mind. And maybe they had, but at least they were having more fun than him! It had been months since the last time either him or Rose had laughed like this.

_I think I might like to keep Donna._  The Doctor whispered into Rose's mind as they slowly calmed down from their laughing fit. A minute later the Doctor caught sight of a door and pulled his and Rose's segway to a stop, Lance and Donna quickly following suit. The Doctor hopped off the segway and, after making sure Rose hadn't fallen off the segway in his hurry, ran to the door before opening the door to find the only thing in the small room was a ladder leading up.

"Wait here, just need to get my bearings. Don't do anything." He told Lance and Donna before looking at Rose. "And don't wonder off." He told her before he jumped onto the ladder.

"If you don't come back me and Donna are gonna runaway together." Rose teased him as he quickly began to climb.

"Wouldn't even dream of leaving you, love. Plus, I couldn't get rid of you even if I sent you away, twice." He joked with her throwing a wink at her over his shoulder.

"Donna, have you thought about this properly?" The Doctor heard Lance ask as he climbed. The Doctor rolled his eyes, and they called  _him_  rude! The man wasn't even  _trying_  to silence his voice! He was loud enough that the Doctor would have been able to hear him even  _without_  his sensitive hearing. And even if he couldn't hear the man, Rose was still there hearing all this! "I mean, this is serious. What the hell are we gonna do?"

"Oh, I thought July." Donna told Lance causing Rose to laugh and the Doctor to shake his head as he opened the hatch he had gotten to. He quickly, and carefully, climbed out of the hatch and onto the top of the flood barrier. After taking in a deep breath of the air and sending the mental image of the beautiful sight to Rose, he quickly climbed back into the hatch, closed the hatch, and made his way back to the others.

"Thames flood barrier. Right on top of us." He informed them as he dropped the last few feet from the ladder to them. "Torchwood snuck in and built this place underneath."

"What, there's like a secret base hidden underneath a major London landmark?" Donna asked. Rose and the Doctor shared a look and a smirk.

"It's a right shock, ain't it? Who would have ever thunk it?" Rose asked feigning shock.

"I know. I know, love." The Doctor said playing along with her before taking Rose's hand and began to lead them towards a second door just farther down the corridor. He opened the door and found what appeared to hold many particle extrusion machines. "Oh! Look at this!" He exclaimed.

"Like a kid in a candy story." Rose muttered playfully under her breath.

"Rose, you cannot tell me this isn't stunning! I mean look at it!" The Doctor told her leading her deeper into the room.

"What does it do?" Donna asked.

"Particle extrusion. Hold on." The Doctor told her before releasing Rose's hand to run over to one of the many machines and lightly tapped it. "Brilliant." He whispered to it in aw even though this technology should not exist yet, but then, this was Torchwood.

"So what have they been doing, I know you're just dying to tell us." Rose told him as she made her way to him.

"They've been manufacturing Huon particles." The Doctor told her as he continued to examine the machine. "Of course, my people got rid of Huons. They unravel the atomic structure."

"Your people? Who are they? What company do you represent?" Lance asked.

"We're just a couple of freelancers. We jump around helping out where we can, but mainly we run." Rose told him smirking.

"But this lot are rebuilding them." The Doctor continued with his explanation as if Lance had never interrupted as he took Rose's hand and began to wonder around the room.

"How?" Rose asked as Donna and Lance began to follow them.

"They've been using the river. Extruding them through a flat hydrogen base so they've got the end result..." The Doctor said as he pulled out a jar of clear liquid from one of the machines and held it up for everyone to see it. "Huon particles in liquid form."

"And that's what's inside me?" Donna asked and in response the Doctor dropped Rose's hand to turn the dial on the jar causing the particles in the jar to glow along side Donna and Rose.

"Oh, my God!" Donna cried out in shock as the Doctor quickly turned the dial back to stop them glowing while looked at Rose fearfully. He had not expected her to glow having been so sure he had gotten every last particle of Huon from her.

_It's probably a result of my connection with the TARDIS._  Rose told him trying to sound sure and confident but the worry and fear she was feeling wasn't helping her.

"Because the particles are inert, they need something living to catalyze inside and that's you. Saturate the body and then..." The Doctor told Donna softly.

"And what about her?" Donna asked nodding her head towards Rose. "Are you manufacturing Huon particles too? Have you dosed her with them too? Is she a living catalyze as well?" Donna demanded obviously scared for Rose and the baby.

"Of course he isn't Donna. Remember how the Doctor said that the only place to find them is in the heart of the TARDIS?" Rose asked her and Donna nodded. "And remember what we told you our..." the Doctor saw Rose glance at Lance, " _transport_  was called?" Donna nodded once more. "Well, to save the Doctor a few years ago, I willingly looking into the heart of a TARDIS and became one with it. That's the reason I'm glowing." She finished.

"And that's safe?" Donna asked.

"I took a huge risk at the time because no one is meant to look into the heart of a TARDIS. I could have died. But I don't regret what I did because in the end, after I saved the Doctor, he saved my mind from burning,I now have forever with him." Rose told Donna truthfully as the Doctor's mind finally realized what happened and how Donna got on board the TARDIS mid-flight. He gave out a cry shocked victory shocking everyone else.

"Oh, the wedding! Yes, you're getting married. That's it!" The Doctor cried out as he spun around happy to have finally figured out the mystery of Donna appearing on his ship. "Best day of your life, walking down the aisle. Your body is a battleground! There's a chemical war inside. Adrenaline, acetylcholine. Wham go the endorphins! Oh, you're cooking. You're like a walking oven. A pressure cooker, a microwave, all churning away. The particles reach boiling point... Shazam!" The Doctor stumbled back as Donna slapped him again shocking the Doctor, he hadn't done anything to be slapped this time! He hadn't brought her back a year late, hadn't been mistaken for a kidnapper! He had solved the mystery! And Rose had been standing right next to their new friend! Why hadn't she stopped Donna from slapping him? Was she still mad about the joke? "What did I do this time?"

"Are you enjoying this?" Donna asked him fearfully and he realized his mistake. He had been so excited about solving the mystery that he had forgotten how terrifying this most be for Donna. He looked back at everything and winced when he realized that Rose had been mentally calling him trying to get him to stop or calm down, but he hadn't heard her in his excitement. No wonder Rose had allowed Donna to slap him. "Is my mind going to burn like Rose's was? Are these particles dangerous? Am I safe?"

"Yes." The Doctor told her and Donna gave him a look that Jackie used to give him when she was sure he was lying.

"Doctor, Rose just told me she risked dying when looking into the heart of a TARDIS. And your lot got rid of Huon particles for a reason, why was that?" Donna asked and the Doctor knew he couldn't continue lying to her because she was too brilliant to be lied to.

"Because they were deadly." The Doctor told her and Donna let out a quiet sob as Rose pulled her into a loving hug.

"I know this seems scary right now, Donna, but the Doctor will sort everything out, he always does." Rose told her.

"Whatever's been done to you, I'll reverse it. I'm not about to lose someone else." The Doctor swore to her. She was his and Rose's friend, and he would be damned before he lost her. The sound of a door opening caused them to glance around the room.

"Oh, she's long since lost." A voice said as a metal wall began to rise showing a large hole in the ground. "I have waited so long. Hibernating at the edge of the universe. Until the secret heart was uncovered and called out to waken me." Multiple cloaked robots stood around the edge of the hole and pointed their guns at them.

"Someone's been digging." The Doctor said as he quickly positioned himself between the robots and Rose while making his way over to the edge of the hole and peered down it. "Oh, very Torchwood. Drilled by laser. How far down does it go?"

"Down and down. All the way to the center of the Earth." The voice said.

"Why? What for? Rose asked.

"Dinosaurs." Donna said confidently and the Doctor spun around to look at her.

"What?" He asked.

"Dinosaurs?" She said again, less confident.

"What are you on about? Dinosaurs." The Doctor asked.

"That film under the Earth with dinosaurs. Trying to help." Donna said.

"You mean 'Journey to the Center of the Earth'?" Rose asked.

"Yeah! That one!" Donna exclaimed.

"That's not helping." The Doctor told them.

"Energy source? Like on Krop Tor?" Rose suggested.

"Yeah, but they had some indication that it was there." The Doctor told her.

"Such a sweet couple." The voice cut in.

"Only a madman talks to thin air. And trust me, you don't want to make me mad." The Doctor told the voice angrily. "Where are you?"

"High in the sky." The voice told them. "Floating so high on Christmas night."

"Yeah, well, we didn't come all this way to be put on the intercom." Rose growled out.

"Come one, let's have a look at you!" The Doctor ordered.

"Who are you with such command?" The voice demanded.

"I'm the Doctor." The Doctor told it.

"Prepare your best medicines, doctor man, for you will be sick at heart." The voice warned them before a Racnoss appeared in front of them on a giant web that had been hung in the sky.

_Spider! Ew ew ew ewewewewewewew!_  Rose screamed in her mind easily reminding the Doctor of her fear of spiders. He was proud that though she was screaming on the inside she hadn't let her fear show outwardly.

"Racnoss." The Doctor breathed out in shock, this species was extinct! "That's impossible. You're one of the Racnoss."

_I don't care what it is, just get rid of it please!_  Rose yelled to him as she took his hand in her and gripped in tightly in fear.

"Empress of the Racnoss." The Racnoss told them as the Doctor pulled her close to him.

"If you're the Empress, where's the rest of the Racnoss?" The Doctor demanded.

"I bet she's the only one." Rose said, her voice not giving away how terrified she was.

"Such a sharp mind." The Empress hissed at her.

"That's it. The last of your kind." The Doctor said. "The Racnoss come from the Dark Times. Billions of years ago. Billions. They were carnivores. Omnivores. They devoured whole planets." The Doctor explained to both Donna and Rose.

"Racnoss are born starving. Is that our fault?" The Empress asked.

"They eat people?" Donna asked.

"Donna, this HC Clements, did he wear those, uh, black and white shoes?" Rose suddenly asked.

"He did! We used to laugh. We used to call him the fat cat in spats." Donna told her and the Doctor wondered how Rose knew that before she pointed at something in the web. The Doctor sucked in a breath when he saw what she had seen. "Oh, my God!" Donna gasped out when she saw it as well.

"Aye! Christmas dinner." The Empress laughed out.

"You shouldn't even exist." The Doctor growled at her. "Way back in history, the Fledgling Empires went to war against the Racnoss. They were wiped out."

"Expect for me." The Empress said.

"That's what I've got inside me, that Huon energy thing." Donna said and the Empress looked away, distracted by something. "O! Look at me, lady, I'm talking. Where do I fit in? How come I get all stacked up with these Huon particles? Look at me, you. Look me in the eyes and tell me."

"The bride is so feisty." The Empress said.

"Yes, I am." Donna agreed as the Doctor caught sight of Lance sneaking up behind the Racnoss with an axe. When had he slipped away? "And I don't know what you are, you big thing. But a spider's just a spider. And an axe is an axe. Now, do it!" Lance raised the axe as the Racnoss turned to look at him and then, after locking eyes with the Empress, Lance began to laugh.

_Oh, I'm so going to kill him!_  Rose hissed in anger as the Empress also began to laugh as the Doctor's hearts sank as the last piece of the puzzle clicked into place. Lance had been the one to dose Donna in Huon particles.

"That was a good one. Your face." Lance laughed out.

"Lance is funny." The Empress said.

"What?" Donna asked confused and in denial.

"I'm sorry." The Doctor told her as Rose pulled her into a comforting hug.

"Sorry for what?" Donna asked still refusing to accept what she knew was true. "Lance, don't be stupid. Get her!"

"God, she's thick!" Lance said. "Months I've had to put up with her. Months! A woman who can't even point to Germany on a map."

"Oi! Watch it! You're asking for a slap you are!" Rose growled out at him, her eyes flashing dangerously.

"I don't understand." Donna said weakly though the Doctor was sure she did actually understand she was just refusing to understand. Refusing to admit that the man she loved betrayed her in the worst way possible.

"Donna, love, how did you meet him?" Rose asked her gently, trying to help her come to terms to what they all knew was true.

"In the office." Donna told her sadly.

"He made you coffee." The Doctor said ignoring the slight shock he felt from Rose at remembering that. True, he had been half listening to their conversation, but he still remembered every word.

"What?" Donna asked.

"Every day I made you coffee." Lance said.

"You had to be dosed with liquid particles over six months." The Doctor told Donna softly and watched as acceptance of the situation finally settled in Donna's eyes before they began to tear up.

"He was poisoning me." Donna whispered and Rose hugged her tighter.

"It was all there in the job title. The head of human resources." The Doctor growled out glaring at Lance. This man had hurt his friend, and once this was all over with he was going to be having serious words with him.

"This time it's personnel." Lance joked smiling darkly.

"But..." Donna said as a tear slipped from her eye. "We were getting married."

"Well, I couldn't risk you running off. I had to say yes. Then I was stuck with a woman who thinks the height of excitement is a new flavoured Pringle. Oh, I had to sit there and listen to all that yap, yap, yap. Oh brad and Angelina! Is Posh pregnant? X factor. Atkins diet. Feng Shui. Split ends. Text me, text me, text me. Dear God, the never-ending fountain of fat, stupid trivia." Lance told her causing Rose to growl. "I deserve a medal."

"You deserve a slap! Several in fact!" Rose told him.

"Oh, is that what she's offered you? The Empress of the Racnoss. The metal, not the slaps." The Doctor said. "What are you? Her consort."

"It's better than a night with her." Lance said.

"But I love you." Donna told Lance sadly as she silently cried.

"That's what made it easy." Lance told her.

"Oh that's it!" Rose roared and would have probably found a way to climb all the way up to him had the Doctor not been quick enough to grab her around the waist.

"It's like you said, Doctor. The big picture." Lance continued ignoring Rose's out burst and the Doctor briefly thought about setting Rose loose on him before deciding against it, he didn't want her that close to the Empress. Now maybe once the man was farther from the Empress  _then_  he would set Rose loose on him.

_While you stand back and giggle like you did back in Cardiff 1869?_  Rose asked having caught his thought.

_I did not giggle!_  The Doctor told her.

"What's the point of it all if the human race is nothing?" Lance continued cutting into his conversation with Rose. "That's what the Empress can give me. The chance to... go out there. To see it. The size of it all."

_Tell him to go buy a telescope._  Rose joked.

"I think you understand that, don't you, Doctor?" Lance said.

"Who is this little physician and his pet?" The Empress asked.

"She called them 'Martian and wife'." Lance told her and for once the Doctor was glad that Donna kept calling him Martian.

"Oh, I'm sort of homeless." The Doctor said as he tightened his hold on Rose. "But the point is, what's down there? The Racnoss are extinct. What's going to help you 4,000 miles down? That's just the molten core of the Earth, innit?"

"I think he wants us to talk." Lance taunted.

"I think so, too." The Empress hissed.

"Well, tough. All we need is Donna." Lance said.

"And your wife, doctor man." The Empress said. "Kill this chattering little doctor man."

"Don't you hurt him!" Rose and Donna yelled as Donna moved to stand in front of them both.

"No, it's all right." The Doctor told them as he whispered his plan to Rose.

"No, I won't let them!" Donna cried out as the robots cocked their guns.

"Ah! Now, except..." The Doctor started.

"Take aim!" The Empress ordered.

"Well, I just want to point out the obvious." He continued.

"They won't hit the bride and wife. They're such very good shots." The Empress bragged as the Doctor reached into his pocket and grabbed the jar of liquid Huon particles.

"Just hold on. Hold on just a tick. Just a tiny little, just a... tick. If you think about it, the particles activated in Donna and drew her inside my spaceship." The Doctor said pulling out the jar. "So reverse it, the spaceship comes to her." He said turning the dial causing both Donna and Rose to start to glow once more.

"Fire!" The Empress ordered, but it was too late as the TARDIS began to materialize around them, protecting them.

"Off we go, then." The Doctor cried turning the dial and stopping both women from glowing the second they were safely inside the TARDIS. Rose and the Doctor left the confused Donna standing on the ramp as they raced around the console and quickly sent them into the Vortex.

"Oh, by the way Donna, you know how you mentioned something about a time machine earlier?" Rose called to the woman as they worked together to send them back in time to the beginning of the Earth. "Well, we sort of lied and now we're about to use it."

"What?" Donna asked.

"We need to find out what the Empress of the Racnoss is digging up. If something's buried at the planet's core, then it must've been there since the beginning. That's just brilliant. Molto Bene! I've always wanted to take you to see this Rose! Ever since our first date! Rose, Donna, I'm going further back than I've ever been before." The Doctor said as they put in the final coordinates. Rose flew from her side of the console towards Donna when she sat down on the captain's chair and the Doctor realized that Donna was still crying over Lance.

_I've got her._ Rose told him as she allowed Donna to cry on her shoulder while she ran her fingers through the woman's hair.  _You just focus on getting us there._


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Join the Discord Channel 'The Doctor's Family' to get sneak peeks at the up coming chapters and to talk with me and others about my DW stories. If you cannot find the channel find me (MyariRose #1920) and let me know you are have trouble finding the channel and I will send you an invite.
> 
> AN: This is a note to everyone, I will be rewriting the first ten or so chapters of Jackie's Mission and the first two chapters have been replaced. Please feel free to check out the replaced chapters.

**Chapter Five-**

He stared unblinkingly in front of them as she carried him in her arms. Teddy Bears didn't need to blink. He took in everything as she skipped down the side walk, no one seeming to notice the eight year old girl and her Teddy Bear. When they had landed here she had promised to show him something amazing. But what was more amazing than her?

"It's almost time." She whispered to him as she sat down on a bench. He continued to stare out in front of them. He didn't notice it at first. He probably wasn't meant to. And had the young man not walked straight up to it and knocked he would have never noticed it.

If he could have blinked in this form, he would have. There, in front of them, sat a strange wooden box. It was a deep blue and claimed to be a Police Public Call Box. Was this what she wanted to show him? What was so amazing about a wooden box? And why did that box look so familiar?

He would have asked her, but there were too many people around. And the last time he talked to her in this form with so many people around to hear him, she had gotten mad at him. They were supposed to be blending in. And talking a Teddy Bear was not blending in.

"How much longer until the TARDIS is fueled, Doctor?" A pretty young woman with bottle blonde hair asked as the man with short military cut hair and leather jacket led not only the young woman but three other people out of the box. He sucked in a breath when he realized where he had seen that box before. He had seen this man when he had been searching for her while she was testing him just last week.

"Should take another 24 hours, which means we've got time to kill." The man (the Doctor) told every one. He watched as the Doctor let got of the young woman's hand only to have her be pulled away by the older woman he had seen the man with during his test.

"That little girl's staring." The young man said nodding over to them.

"Probably wondering what five people can do inside a small wooden box." A second young man said with a smirk as the rest of the group turned to look at them. One of her arms left him so she could give them a wave of her fingers. The Doctor smiled and waved back.

"You wanted to know who my mum and dad were. That's them. Before everything happened." She whispered to him before sliding off the bench as the group turned and walked away. "They don't know about me yet. This was before they were married. But they've told me all about this day, this was when dad finally figures out that Bad Wolf was following them."

Bad Wolf. He had heard that name before. Where had he heard it? And why did it send both waves of fear and hope through him?

"Do you wanna meet her? Bad Wolf? She's the reason I was able to be born. Without her I wouldn't be alive." She told him.

"Yes." He told her and then suddenly they were inside a large room of what he could tell was a magnificent space ship where the young bottle blonde woman stood before the console of the ship surrounded by a beautiful golden light. All around them was a beautiful and terrifying song played all around them from every surface of the room and, though he had not been to any other rooms, he knew it would be in them as well. This ship was alive and very powerful.

"Are you sure about this, Mummy?" She asked the young woman who looked away from the console to stare at them.

"Yes. I need to save my Doctor." The woman told them.

"The only way to truly save the Doctor is to combine with the TARDIS." So this was the Doctor's faithful ship? "But you must know that once you two are combined, you two can never fully be separated ever again, no matter what the Doctor or anyone else does." It took him longer than it probably should have to realize what she was showing him. And that fact that she actually trusted him enough to show him this shook him.  _She_  trusted  _him_. He had worked for the people who had ripped her away from her family and tried to make her into a weapon. And yet she trusted him. "You can very well easily die if you combine with the TARDIS. And if you do somehow manage to survive, you will forever be altered." She told the woman, her  _mother_ , while petting him. Her hands running through the fur that covered his body in this from calmed him.

"How so?" Her mother asked.

"You'll become more like him. You'll grow a second heart, your biology clock will be slowed down quite a bit, almost to the point you stop aging. I don't know if you'll be  _exactly_  like him, but you'll be more...  _compatible_ , if you will." She told her mother with a smirk.

"What do you mean?" Her mother asked.

"It means, that should you two wish to, you will be able to start a family together." She told her.

"Is that who you are? Are you mine and the Doctor's daughter?" Her mother asked.

"Who know? Time is always changing. One thing you do today, or tomorrow, or even three weeks from now can change the future." She told her mother shocking him. So, potentially, nothing was set in stone. Right now they were visiting this woman as mother, daughter, and watcher, but if one small thing were to change, then so could this very meeting. And now the reason they hadn't just found her parents after everything had happened made sense, they had to make sure that certain small events took place to insure she was born to the Doctor and this woman. "Now, I will ask you but one more time. Are you sure you wish to become Bad Wolf?"

"Yes." The woman said and she snapped causing the ship to start to dematerialize before they were gone.

**-Five-**

The Doctor awkwardly glanced around the console to look at Donna as Rose handed her a tissue to wipe her eyes. "We've arrived." The Doctor told the woman cautiously. It wasn't that he was fearful of her going off on him and slapping him once more (he had actually gotten quite used to that with Jackie before he had changed), he just didn't know if she would be ready for this after everything that happened. Though he was pretty sure the beauty of a solar system being born would help her start to heal. "You want to see?" Donna sighed as she wiped her eyes.

"This might be the only chance you'll ever get to see this. Don't let Lance win. If it helps you can look at it this way: This is what Lance wanted to see and you're the one here seeing it, not him." Rose told her softly getting a weak smile in return.

"I suppose." Donna said sadly. The Doctor and Rose locked eyes before he grabbed the screen and pulled it to him. He typed a few commands before sighing. This wouldn't do the beauty of this solar system justice. "The scanner's a bit small." He told them before giving Donna a small smile. "Maybe your way's best." He joked lightly before walking over to the doors, he paused before he got to them and looked back at the women. "Come on."

"A once in a life time chance." Rose reminded Donna as she helped the woman off the captain's chair and gently led her by the hand to the Doctor.

"No human's ever seen this. You and Rose will be the first" The Doctor informed Donna.

"All I wanna see is my bed." Donna told him and Rose wrapped a comforting arm around her.

"Donna Noble, Rose Tyler, welcome to the creation of the Earth." The Doctor said as he opened the doors. He smiled at both of them as they gasped in shock as both women took in the sight in front of them. And though it wasn't much, just a bunch of large chunks of rocks and gas clouds, it was still a stunning sight. "We've gone back 4.6 billion years. There's no solar system. Not yet. Only dust and rocks and gas."

"You take me to the best places." Rose breathed out and he took her hand.

"That's the sun. Over there. Brand-new." The Doctor told them using his free hand to point and the baby star. "Just beginning to burn."

"A baby star." Rose whispered in awe causing him to chuckle lovingly at her, thinking of their own baby that was growing in her womb. Their baby girl that would one day be taken from them.

"Where's the Earth?" Donna asked unknowingly breaking him out of his dark thought before he could begin to spiral down into the dark pits of his mind where only Rose would be able to pull him back from.

"All around us. In the dust." Rose told her. The two of them shared a look before they shared a small smile.

"Puts the wedding in perspective." Donna said. "Lance was right. We're just tiny."

"No, but that's what you do. The human race. Make sense out of chaos. Marking it out with weddings and Christmas and Calendars." The Doctor told her trying to help her feel any better than before while mentally cursing Lance for making this brilliant woman hurt like she was. "This whole process is beautiful. But only if it is being observed."

"So, me and Rose came out of all this." Donna said and the Doctor knew she was trying to see it the way him and Rose were.

"Isn't that brilliant?" The Doctor asked her. The three of them stood there for another minute waiting for the first rock to come back to start forming the Earth.

"I think that's the Isle of Wight." Donna joked weakly as a large rock floated by them. Rose and the Doctor chuckled glad that she was at least trying.

"Eventually gravity takes hold. Say, one big rock, heavier then the others, start to pull other rocks towards it." The Doctor explained. "All the dust and gas and elements get pulled in, everything piling in until you get..."

"The Earth." Donna finished.

"Now, the question is, what was that first rock?" The Doctor asked, moments later a star like ship appeared.

"Look." Donna said nodding to it.

"The Racnoss." The Doctor hissed out before releasing Rose's hand and bolting back over to the console. "Hold on, the Racnoss are hiding from the war. What's it doing?"

"Exactly what you said." Donna said as Rose sent him the mental image of dust, rocks and gasses beginning to surround the ship. The Doctor ran back over to them.

"Oh, they didn't just bury something in the center of the Earth." The Doctor breathed out.

"They  _became_  the center of the Earth." Rose finished.

"The fist rock." The Doctor said before they were tossed to the floor of the TARDIS when it violently shook, Donna and Rose just barely keeping themselves from being tossed out of the TARDIS.

"What was that?" Donna asked as the Doctor kicked on door shut while Rose pushed the other one shut to keep them from being tossed out.

"Trouble." The Doctor growled as he tried to make his way back to the console as the three of them were tossed and thrown about the room as the TARDIS continued to shake violently.

"What the hell is it doing?" Donna demanded as she barely stopped herself from headbutting the the console as Rose was flung dangerously into a coral.

"You know that little trick of mine, particles pulling particle?" The Doctor growled out as he was tossed over the console, a lever digging into his back as he was forced to flip over it, using that flip to kick a lever up where he needed it. "Well, it works in reverse, and they're pulling us back!" He explained as he rushed to figure out a way to stop it as Rose latched on to the coral she had been flung to.

"Well, can't you stop it?" Donna asked gripping onto the console to keep herself from being tossed and flung about. "Hasn't it got a handbrake? Can't you reverse or warp or fade or something?"

"What about the extrapolator!?" Rose cried out.

"Back-seat drivers." The Doctor growled out before he registered what Rose had said. "Oh! Brilliant, love!" He called to her quickly making his way to the Donna's side of the console where he had hidden the extrapolator. He grabbed the heavy board that had part of it covered in concrete to make it harder to steal, nearly being thrown over the railing by a violently shake and dropped it onto the console. "It can't stop us, but it should give us a good bump! Now!" He yelled before hitting the extrapolator with his trusty hammer, seconds later the violent shaking stopped.

"Let's not do that again, please." Rose sighed out as she unwrapped her self from the coral before jogging towards the door with the Doctor and Donna right behind her.

"We're about 200 yards to the right. Come on." The Doctor told them before crabbing Rose's hand and taking off down the corridor with Donna following.

"What do we do?" Donna panted out as they ran.

"I don't know. I'm making it up as I go along." The Doctor told her.

"Don't worry, though, Donna, he's great at making it up as he goes along. It's never failed us once." Rose reassured the woman as they came to a door. The Doctor released Rose's hand to pull out a stethoscope and put it to the door.

"I still don't understand. I'm full of particles, but what for?" Donna asked.

"There's a Racnoss web at the center of the Earth, but my people unraveled their power source. If huon particles cease to exist, the Racnoss will stop." The Doctor began explaining.

_Doctor!_  Rose cried out in his mind before he felt her fall unconscious causing him to growl as he spun around to find both her and Donna gone.

"I had a plan!" The Doctor growled into the empty corridor. "A plan that did not involve either of you being captured!" He used his screwdriver to unlock the door to find a cloaked robot in the room with its gun pointed at him. The Doctor quickly took him down and stole his cloak. "This would have been so much cooler if we would have been able to do it how I had planned." He muttered angrily to himself before quickly make his way to where he knew they had been taken.

_"Do you want to be released?"_  The Doctor heard the Empress hiss in his mind as he felt Rose waken up and knew she was sending him everything that was happening.

_"Yes!" Donna and Lance yelled._

_"Of course!" Rose growled at the Empress._

"You're supposed to say 'I do'." The Empress taunted as the Doctor slipped into the room.

_I'm here._  He sent to Rose and felt her relief.

"No chance." Lance told the Empress.

"Been there, done that, got the proof." Rose told the Empress sounding bored.

"Say it." The Empress demanded. And as the Doctor waited for the right chance to make his entrance, he watched as Lance and Donna look at each other.

"I do." Lance growled out in annoyance.

"I do!" Donna said before looking at Rose who sighed and rolled her eyes.

"I do." Rose said.

"I don't." The Empress said before laughing. "Activate the particle. Purge every late one!" She ordered as Donna, Lance, and Rose began to glow, Rose more so than the others. "And release!" The Doctor watched as the particles flew from Donna and Lance as, what appeared to be, a shield of blue light surrounded Rose. The particles from Donna and Lance flew down the hole as Rose stopped glowing and slumped over, fighting to stop from passing out once more. "The secret heart unlocks and they will waken from their sleep of ages."

"Who will? What's down there?" Donna asked fearfully.

"How thick are you?" Lance asked.

"Don't make me reach over there and smack you, 'cause I'll find a way to do it." Rose panted out her mind wavering in and out of unconsciousness and the Doctor could have sworn he heard howling and singing coming from her mind.

"My children, the long lost Racnoss, now reborn to feast on flesh. The webstar shall come to me." The Empress said. "My babies will be hungry. They need sustenance. Perish the web."

"Use them, not me. Use them!" Lance begged causing the Doctor to growl at him as Donna glared him.

"Oh, my funny little lad," The Racnoss laughed at him, "but you were quite impolite to your lady friend. The Empress does not approve." She said before slicing the part of the web Lance was in, causing him to drop. And though the man had literally just begged the Racnoss Empress to kill Rose and their unborn child, the Doctor couldn't help feel sadden by the lose of this man's life.

"Lance!" Donna cried out as he dropped.

"Harvest the human. Reduce them to meat." The Empress ordered and the Doctor knew it was time to act. "My children are climbing towards me and none shall stop them." She said as he made his way closer to them, silently climbing the stairs of the scaffolding wanting to be a close as he could before he began his plan. "So you might as well unmask, my clever little doctor man."

"Oh, well, nice try." The Doctor said as he removed the cloak from himself. "Rose hold on! I've got you and Donna." He said quickly pulling out his screwdriver and pointing it at the web loosening the web as Rose lost the battle and fell unconscious.

"We're gonna fall!" Donna cried.

"You're gonna grab Rose, and you're gonna swing!" The Doctor told her, Donna quickly wrapped her arms around Rose before grabbing the web in time to swing them both. "I've got you!" He said holding out his arms to catch them both, only to have them hit the wall just under the landing he was on. The Doctor closed his eyes and winced. Donna was never going to let him live this down and, once Donna informed Rose of this, neither was she. He was going to be  _living_  on that uncomfortable couch. "Oh, sorry. Please don't tell Rose about this!" The Doctor said looking at the two women on the ground under him, Donna was glaring up at him while Rose was resting, unconscious, next to her.

"Oh, Rose is so going to be told of this, Martian!" Donna hissed at him before she sat up and began to check over Rose.

"The doctor man amuses me." The Empress hiss out reminding the Doctor she was still there.

"Empress of the Racnoss, I give you one last chance." The Doctor told her. "I can find you a planet. I can find you and your children a place in the universe to coexist. Take that offer and end this now."

"These men are so funny." The Empress said.

"What's your answer?" The Doctor asked even though he had a feeling he knew what it was.

"Oh! I'm afraid I have to decline." The Empress said with a laugh.

"Then what happens next is your own doing." The Doctor warned her placing his hands in his pocket.

"I'll show you what happens next." The Empress hissed at him. "At arms!" The robots around the room raised their guns. "Take aim!" Half of them pointed at him the other half pointed at Rose and Donna, Donna quickly wrapping her body around the unconscious Rose. "And..."

"Relax." The Doctor said he said hitting the button on the remote in one of his pockets to deactivate them.

"What did you do?" Donna asked him.

"Guess what I've got, Donna." The Doctor said before pulling out the remote from his pocket and showing her, confusing her. "Pockets."

"How did that fit in there?" Donna asked.

"They're bigger on the inside." He told her with a smirk.

"Roboforms are not necessary. My children may feast on Martian flesh." The Empress hissed.

"Oh, but I'm not from Mars." The Doctor told her sounding a lot calmer than he was. This Racnoss had not only threatened the people of Earth, but she also threatened his new friend Donna and his wife and unborn child. For months he had been angry at the universe for making him and Rose loose Jackie and had forced himself to hide his anger as to not frighten Rose, but he was tired of hiding his anger, tired of being the better person. Just this once he wanted to let go and just give in to the anger.

"Then where?" The Empress asked.

"My home planet is far away and long since gone. But its name lives on." The Doctor told the Empress. "Gallifrey." The Empress hissed at him.

"They murdered the Racnoss!" The Empress yelled glaring at him.

"I warned you." He told her. "You did this." He pulled out three ornaments he had taken from Donna's reception just hours ago.

"No, no. Don't!" The Empress begged but it was too late. The Doctor threw the ornaments into the air before pulling out more and tossing them. "No! No! No! No!" The Doctor used the remote to activate the ornaments and made them two of them blow holes into the wall of the flood gate before sending the rest into the hole. "No!" He barely registered Donna covering Rose with her body as flames shot from the hole. They would pay for everything! Water began to rush into the room and Donna quickly began to drag Rose to higher ground. "My children!" The Empress shrieked as the water began to drain down the hole killing the Racnoss that had been climbing up the whole. "My children!"

"Doctor!" Donna yelled at him snapping him out of the dark trance he had put himself in. "You can stop now. Rose and I are safe. But we won't be if we don't leave now. I'm not strong enough to carry her by myself."

"My children!" The Empress cried and the Doctor looked at the destruction he had allowed to happen. He looked down at the remote in his hand and found himself once again in that shack pressing the button on the Moment. He forced that thought away for now and focused on helping Donna and Rose to safety.

"Come on, time to find a way out." The Doctor told her rushing down the stairs and took Rose from Donna before they began to climb up the stairs.

"Transport me!" The Empress yelled before she teleported away. The Doctor led Donna to the room with the ladder in it, urging her to climb, before he carefully placed Rose over his shoulder and began to climb after her.

"What about the Empress?" Donna asked as they climbed.

"She's used up all her Huon energy. She's defenseless." The Doctor told her getting to the top of the ladder and carefully pulled himself up beside Donna to be able to open the hatch as the Empress's ship was destroyed. Once he knew it was safe, the Doctor allowed Donna to climb out first before helping her pull Rose carefully out of the hatch. After climbing out, the Doctor quickly cradled the slowing wakening Rose into his arms as him and Donna began to laugh in relief.

"There's just one problem." Donna said once they had stopped laughing.

"What it is?" The Doctor asked.

"We've drained the Thames." Donna informed him. The Doctor looked out to into the Thames to see that she was right, they began laughing once more.

"What's s' funny?" Rose asked, her words slurred a bit.

"We drained the Thames." The Doctor told her sending her the mental image causing her to chuckle weakly as she cracked her eyes open.

"What'd I miss? How'd we manage to drain the Thames?" Rose asked.

"Everything. But don't worry, I'm sure Donna would be happy to fill you in." The Doctor told her bending his head low enough to rub his nose with hers.

**-Five-**

"And then 'e told me that we was gonna swing!" The Doctor heard Donna tell Rose as he walked towards the Infirmary after having set the TARDIS on Donna's street.

"Oh  _please_  tell me this is gonna go how I think it is." Rose said as the Doctor made it to the door.

"And so, without really given a choice, I hold onta you and swing us across the hole and towards where your husband is waiting with his arms out ready to catch us." Donna continues as Rose giggles madly causing the Doctor to smile. "And we swing under him and hit the wall!" Rose burst out laughing.

"Oh, Donna, did you really have to tell her  _that_  part?" The Doctor asked trying to sound whinny, but his large smile was keeping him from doing so.

"I'm guessing we've arrived?" Rose asked and the Doctor nodded. With the help of Donna, Rose slipped off the bed and held the woman's hand as they made their way to him. The Doctor smiled at them both before leading them back down the hallway and to the console where they exited the TARDIS.

"There we go. I told you she'd be all right. Survive anything." The Doctor told Donna who, earlier, had wondered if the TARDIS would be okay after not only being forcefully pulled back from the beginning on the Earth to being under water for an hour and half.

"More than I've done." Donna said sadly as Rose leaned her head on the woman's shoulder and the Doctor took out his screwdriver and scanned her once more, even though both women had been scanned in the infirmary. But this scan was more for show anyway.

"Well, all the Huon particles are gone. No damage. You're fine." The Doctor told her.

"Yeah, apart form that." Donna told him with a sigh. "I missed my wedding, I lost my job and became a widow on the same day. Sort of."

"I couldn't save him." The Doctor told her sadly.

"He deserved it." Donna said and Rose hugged her as the Doctor raised an eyebrow at her knowing she didn't believe that. "No, he didn't." She admitted before glancing behind her at her house. "Better get inside, they'll be worried."

"Best Christmas present that any family could receive." Rose told her as she moved from Donna's side to stand next to the Doctor and took his hand in hers. "Oh shoot, you hate Christmas, don't you?"

"Yes, I do." Donna said.

"Even if it's snowing?" The Doctor asked before reaching into the TARDIS and flipped a switch sending a ball of light into the air causing it to begin snowing shocking both Rose and Donna.

"I didn't know you could do that!" Rose told him as Donna began laughing.

"I can't believe you did that." Donna said while laughing.

"Oh, basic atmospheric excitation." The Doctor explained with a smirk happy to seem smiles on both the women's faces, smiles that he had put there.

"Merry Christmas." Donna told them.

"And you." Rose told her.

_Shall I ask her to join us?_  The Doctor asked Rose.

_If you don't, I will._  Rose told him.

"So, what will you do with yourself now?" The Doctor asked as casually as he could.

"Not getting married, for starters. And I'm not gonna temp any more." Donna told them with a sigh. "I don't know, travel. See a bit more of planet Earth, walk in the dust. Just do out there and do something."

"Well, you could always..." The Doctor started before suddenly becoming unsure, he knew he had scared Donna back there when he lost control.

"What?" Donna asked.

"Come with us." Rose finished. They waited, hearts beating, hoping their new friend would join them.

"No." Donna said and the Doctor felt Rose's heart break and knew that  _he_  had done this.  _He_  had run their friend away. Scared her. He deserved to live on the uncomfy couch.

"Okay." The Doctor said wrapping his arm around Rose as he felt her fight back her tears. He would spend the rest of his life making this up to her, he would take Rose wherever she wanted, do whatever she wanted. Because this was  _his_  fault.

"I can't." Donna told them sadly.

"No, no, that's all right. It's fine. We understand. This life isn't for everyone." Rose told her.

"No, but really, I mean, everything we did today, do you two live your lives like that all the time?" Donna asked.

"Not all the time." The Doctor told her, believing he knew what she was asking with that question.

"I think you do. And I couldn't." Donna told him.

"But, Donna, you've seen it out there. You've seen the beauty of it all." Rose told her.

"But it's also terrible." Donna told her. "That place was flooded and burning and they were dying, and he stood there like, I don't know, a stranger." The Doctor flinch at that but Rose sent him a wave of love and understanding. "And then you, Doctor, made it snow! I mean, you scare me to death."

"Well, then." The Doctor said hiding the pain her words made him feel. He had brought this on himself, after all. He had gave in to the anger and the hatred, and now the consequence of his actions were punishing not only him but his Rose as well.

"I'll tell you what I will do, though. Christmas dinner." Donna offered and felt the pain shoot through Rose as she remembered the last Christmas dinner they had. The Doctor sent her all his love and comfort. "Oh, come on."

"I, we don't do that sort of thing." The Doctor told Donna tightening his grip on Rose.

"You guys did it last you, you both said so." Donna pointed out. "And you might as well, because Mum always cooks enough for 20."

_Rose, this is your decision. If you don't want to or you don't think you can handle it, we will leave._  The Doctor told her.

_I-I can't, it's too soon._  Rose told him.

"I can't. I'm sorry, I just can't." Rose told Donna before she turned and bolted into the TARDIS.

"The last Christmas we had was with her mother, the one we just lost. I'm sorry, maybe one of these days she'll be ready. But it's just too soon." The Doctor told the concerned woman before rushing in after Rose. When he didn't see her in the in the console room the TARDIS flashed a picture of her curled in her mother's chair that was now sitting in the replicated flat on the TARDIS. He quickly began to set the TARDIS to drift in the Vortex.

"Doctor! Doctor!" He heard Donna shout and quickly stopped what he was doing and rush to the door.

"Blimey you can shout." The Doctor told her.

"Am I ever gonna see you two again?" Donna asked and hope filled him. Maybe Donna just needed time, maybe the next time the ran into her she would be ready to join them.

"If me and Rose are lucky." The Doctor told her with a smile causing her to smile back at him.

"Just promise me one thing." Donna said. "Don't lose her. You need her, she makes you better. And I know that had Rose not been unconscious that you wouldn't have gone as far as you had tonight. Rose would have been able to stop you sooner."

"You're right." The Doctor told her. "Thanks then, Donna. Good luck. And just... be magnificent."

"I think I will, yeah." Donna told him and the Doctor stepped back into the TARDIS closing the door behind him.

"Doctor?" Donna called.

"Oh, what is it now?" The Doctor asked feigned annoyance.

"Rose's mother? What was her name?" Donna asked and the Doctor suddenly found himself fighting back the same tears his wife was now crying.

"Her name was Jackie." He told her as a tear fell from his eye before he slipped back into the TARDIS and finally put her to drift in the vortex before he left to join his wife in mourning the loss of Jackie.


End file.
